Every Light That Shines
by T. F. Crosby
Summary: JONAS When everything that can go wrong goes wrong on a simple trip to the Rescue Mission, the brothers are reminded of the true meaning of Christmas.
1. Prologue

This was intended to be a Christmas one-shot published before Christmas. However, it's not complete. And because I wanted to have something up before Christmas Day I'm dividing it up, as you can see. Hopefully, it will be completed before New Year's. Christmas has just been too hectic.

I only went through this once in editing, so I hope I got everything then. I'm notorious for leaving out words. Anyway, I hope you enjoy.

**Every Light That Shines**

_**Prologue**_

Christmas music blared through the firehouse as the Lucas brothers (minus Frankie who had gone off with a friend) rushed from one end to the other, trying to gather all the toys, blankets and other necessities for the Rescue Mission into one place. Their parents had said it would be easier and quicker to load the car that way. Nick was having an internal debate over that idea. Easier…perhaps. Quicker…not so much. It would have all been done already (and they would have been on their way) had Joe _not_ felt the need to have a thirty-minute external debate over the _gather-first_ idea (first with their dad and then with the air [possibly God, but most likely the air] when their dad decided that there were more important things that needed doing); and had Kevin _not_ felt the need to stop every time he walked through the kitchen to ask their mom if he could _taste-test_ a cookie. This, after the first time, was followed by a, _you already had one_ and that was followed by a, _but not from that pan_ or _not that kind_ and that was followed by the short, sweet and decisive, _Kevin_. And if that were not enough to slow the process, when he was finally finished with his rant, Joe found it necessary to play (he called it _safety-testing_) with the toys—those that made noise, anyway. So, technically, it was only one Lucas brother who was actually doing anything constructive.

Nick sighed as he set the last box of toiletries on the floor by the door to the garage. _How did he end up doing all the work? _Weren't his two _older _brothers _supposed_ to be helping? He should've gone ahead to the soup kitchen with Frankie and his friend. He looked over at Joe who was now playing with a toy fire truck—appropriate, but no less annoying. Kevin had joined him and was off in his own little world, playing with two big hand puppets; an alligator and a duck. He watched as Kevin had the duck _eat_ the alligator and then barf it back up. Joe seemed to find it rather amusing._ Oh, how he wished he was with his younger brother right now._

_It's now official, _he thought._ Frankie's the genius…not me_. He sighed again, looking down at the boxes in front of him. Glancing over at his brothers who were now in the midst of a puppet battle, Joe had forgone the fire truck for the alligator puppet, he shook his head as another thought entered his mind. _How did BOTH of them get to be older than me? _He picked up the fire truck and put it back into the box with the other noise-making toys.

"Leave it to Mom to organize everything," he said to himself. A long, stuttered quack drew his attention back to his brothers. "Are you two fin—" He couldn't help letting out a snort when Joe inadvertently smacked himself in the face with the alligator's tail as his brothers' farcical puppet show continued.

Kevin made a quacking sound again.

Joe stared at his puppet for a moment. "What kind of a sound does an alligator make?"

Kevin shrugged. "Don't know. But baby alligators—"

"What are you two doing?"

The two older Lucas boys looked up from their self-entertainment. "Hey, Dad."

"We're testing the toys," Kevin said matter-of-factly.

"Making sure they're safe for the kids," Joe added.

Uh-huh…." Tom popped a piece of fudge into his mouth. "Mmm…your mother's fudge is fantastic."

Kevin and Joe jumped up from their seats on the couch. "The fudge is ready!" They grinned at each other, ready to make a break for the kitchen counter.

"Oh, no, you don't," Tom said, stopping them before they had taken two steps. He pushed them back. "Nick, you can go…get yourself a piece of fudge. You two need to load the car." They groaned. "Hey, Nick gathered up all the stuff."

"Not all of it," Joe said, insulted by the very idea that he hadn't done anything. "I brought a bag—box…down…."

Kevin looked at him. "Actually both of us would only get halfway and then Nick would come get it and take it over to the door."

"Not true," Joe huffed, giving his older brother the "not helping" look. "I…I…. I don't have a leg to stand on, do I?" His dad's reproving look echoed a resounding "no, you don't." He sighed. "On it."

"Can we have a piece of fudge first?" Kevin asked with pleading eyes.

Not falling for the puppy-eyes (this time), Tom, pointing to the boxes on the floor, replied, "Kevin."

"Right."

"And hurry up. It's almost ten."

Nick patted Joe on the shoulder. "Better get loading, Stumpy." Joe glared. "I'm gonna go get some fudge."

Kevin picked up a box, watching Nick walk away. "Did we just experience some kind of lesson?"

Joe pursed his lips. Yeah…." He looked at Kevin. "Why do I get the feeling this day is going to be full of them?"

* * *

It would have taken less time to load everything had they loaded the right vehicle the first time around. The SUV (Buick Enclave to be exact, which Kevin swore was mocking them when they were unloading what they had managed to fit in the trunk of the Lincoln) had more room, was equipped with snow tires, and all the other stuff necessary for a vehicle driven in a winter clime, like the one that enveloped New Jersey, that are not important enough to list. One would think that this would have been obvious. However….

Joe slammed the trunk door shut and leaned against it. "No more. Please, no more."

"You know what's gonna happen since you said that," Kevin said with a grin.

"You forgot the stuff for the food bank," Nick said, walking up to them with yet another box.

Joe slowly turned his head to face his younger brother. "Sorry, there's no more room in the inn. You'll have to put that one in the manger."

Kevin snickered. "Good one, Joe." Joe gave him a cock-eyed grin.

"Yeah, good one," Nick said flatly, grimacing. "Could you please open the door so I can put this in the backseat?"

Joe pushed himself off the vehicle and walked over to his brother, spun around behind him, grabbed the handle and opened the door. Nick looked at his smiling brother and shook his head. Setting the box on the floor of the backseat he said, "I'd pray for normal brothers, but then I'd be bored."

Joe was about to say something in response when their dad walked in. "You do have the snow chains?" he said worriedly.

"They're under the backseat," Kevin replied.

"Of the SUV?"

The boys stared at him.

"Yes, Dad. They're under the backseat of the Enclave," Kevin said. "Stop worrying so much."

"I'm not worrying…." He paused. "But you do have everything?"

"Yes, Dad," they drawled in unison.

"Coats…scarves…hats...."

_"Dad!"_

"You salted the driveway, right?"

They decided not to respond with words. Staring at their father with deadpan expressions seemed the better idea at that point and they were hoping that the man they called _Dad_ would have the epiphany that _he_ was now the one wasting time and upon this sudden realization would tell them to be careful and send them on their way. _This was their vision of the perfect scenario._

"Did you fill the tank yesterday like I told you to?"

Now, had that perfect scenario they'd envisioned actually played out, there would have been music pertaining to that scenario playing in the background (though they actually _did_ have music playing in the background, that fact was neither here nor there). And just after telling them to be careful and sending them on their way, but before they got into the Enclave, he would have another epiphany—one that would cause their perfect scenario to come to a screeching halt, symbolized by the needle scratching the record and the blank looks from them.

However, their father did not appear to be one for perfect scenarios or the killing of them. He obviously preferred eliminating the perfect scenario altogether and getting directly to the record-scratching query. Even so, he was still met with the vacant expressions from the three of them.

"We'll fill it up after we go to the food bank," Joe said, hoping _that_ would get their dad _off _their backs so they could _go_.

"Alright…."

_Good. He seems satisfied with that,_ Joe thought.

"But you really should…."

Joe frowned and walked past his dad (who was now rambling) to the door. Stepping into the house he yelled, "Mom…! Will you please tell Dad to stop worrying so much?"

"Honey, if your father didn't worry so much, I'd be worried about him."

_Okay, so she brings up a good point. But still…. _"Well, anyway, we're leaving." _That is, if we can get passed Admiral Anxiety._

"Be careful. We'll see you at the Rescue Mission at five. I love you."

"Love you too, Mom." He stepped back into the garage. "Okay, we have Mom's blessing. Let's go." Joe wasted no time getting into the front passenger side of the Enclave. "Bye, Dad."

"Be careful," Tom said as the other two got into the vehicle.

"We will," came the unified reply.

Nick leaned forward into the consul as Kevin started the engine. "Remind me again, why are we doing _all_ of this on Christmas Eve?"

Kevin glanced at him. "Because it's Lucas tradition," he said imitating their father. "That's what Dad says, anyway."

Nick leaned back into his seat saying to himself, "This has all the makings of a hideously long day."

Joe and Kevin looked at each other. "Should we tell him about the day-full-of-lessons conclusion we came to?" Joe said.

"Nah," Kevin replied. "He's a genius. He'll figure it out."

*******

And so it begins. It's going to be a less than fun trip for them...after the foof (foof? Let's try food) bank. Don't ask about the vehicles, it's just what I went with.

I never had any intention of writing a JONAS story or anything involving the JoBros, but oddly they've become my muse of late inspiring ideas for non-fanfiction stories. Okay, I'm dropping the oddly and going with down-right bizarre. _And it all started back in August...._ You know, I really do wonder what they'd think of all of that.


	2. Chapter One

_Sorry for the long delay. This should have been up a long time ago._

_**Chapter One**_

The trip to the food bank was rather uneventful. Well, there was the fish-tailing after hitting an icy curve (fortunately, there was no one else around at that moment); not to mention nearly rear-ending the truck in front of them when the driver decided to slam on his breaks for, what seemed to them, no reason at all; _and_ not to mention the fact that they were nearly rear-ended themselves when Kevin had to slam on the breaks when the driver of a Camaro had the brilliant idea of running a red light. _Heart attacks all around._ (It was at that moment Nick decided that if their parents—_Dad_ called and inquired of their trip to the food bank he would say,_ it was rather uneventful,_ hoping his father wouldn't notice his use of the qualifier _rather_.) And if that weren't enough for their _rather uneventful_ trip, as Kevin went to pull into a parking space, someone on the opposite side of the row decided that _they_ deserved that particular spot. Kevin's eye twitched. Gripping the steering wheel tightly, he took a deep breath and found another spot—_far away from that person._ The fact that not one of them had dropped a single swear word after all that had occurred was a miracle. However, that wasn't to say that not one of them may have _thought_ it.

_Christmas Eve was not starting out well._

The three of them sat in the SUV for a few moments in silence. Seeing his older brother resting his head on the steering wheel Joe asked, "Are you okay, Kev?"

Kevin lifted his head. "If Dad calls—" Nick's phone rang. "Right on cue."

"Dad…. Yes, we got to the food bank…. Yes, were all in one piece." Joe and Kevin looked at each other as Nick's conversation with their dad continued. "Everything's fine, Dad…. Yes, Dad…. As soon as we're done here, we're going to fill up the tank and then get some lunch or vice versa…. As long as we do both…. Okay, Dad…. I love you, too….Bye…." Nick ended the call and sighed. "I swear that man…."

"You do realize that at least one of us is going to turn out just like him," Joe said.

The two older boys looked back at their younger brother. Feeling the sensation he was being stared at, Nick looked up from playing with his phone. "Why are you looking at me?" They grinned at him. "I am _not_ the most likely candidate."

Joe smirked. "Whatever you say, little brother."

"I'm not." Nick glared at them as they continued to grin at him. "If any of us are going to turn out like Dad it's most likely going to be you," Nick said, wagging his phone at his oldest brother.

"Whatever stops the tears, Nicky," Kevin said.

Nick grimaced while his older brothers smiled at each other. _This is unfair. Why don't they ever pick on Frankie?_

Kevin unbuckled his seatbelt. "Come on. Let's get that food in there so we can get some food in our stomachs."

* * *

Paying attention to where you are going is essential in any situation. The Lucas brothers each made a mental note of that idea when Kevin's foot caught the leg of a chair and he was sent plowing into the next table. It wasn't entirely his fault, though. People should learn to push their chairs in.

"You okay, son?"

Kevin looked up. A man in a trucker jacket and New Jersey Devils ball cap was seated at the table across from him. Kevin pushed himself up and sat in the chair that was beside him. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"Nice one, Kev," Nick said. "Good thing there wasn't any food on the table."

The man chuckled. "It would be nice if people would push their chairs in when they get up."

"My thoughts exactly," Kevin said.

"Yeah, well, as nice as that would be," Joe said, walking towards the counter to order, "it's not going to make me any less hungry."

Kevin's stomach growled. "Excuse me."

"Cajun Chicken Alfredo," Nick said to him as he walked passed.

"Got it."

The man raised an eyebrow at Nick. "Hey," Nick said, smiling, "after all those dozens of cookies I've baked for him, the least he could do is order for me."

The man chuckled again. "The name's Gideon," he said, offering his hand to Nick.

"Nick." He shook the man's hand and pointed to his brothers. "And those two are my older brothers, Joe and Kevin."

Gideon gave a nod and said, "So what brings you boys out here on Christmas Eve?"

"We're taking some stuff to the Rescue Mission and we're gonna help serve dinner."

"Good to hear," Gideon replied. "Most people would be out at a party. Not that that's a bad thing."

"Yeah, well, it's kind of a family tradition."

"It's a good one to have. Matthew 25: 40 says, And the King shall answer and say unto them, 'Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done unto me'." He paused for a moment as the waitress placed his food on the table.

"Here you are, sir. Can I get you anything else?"

"No, I'm good. Thank you."

Nick furrowed his brow in thought. _That waitress looks like an older version of Macy. Weird._

As the waitress walked away he turned back to Nick. "Don't let the tradition become so routine that you forget why you began it in the first place."

Nick opened his mouth to speak but was stopped by Joe calling for him. "Nick! We're sitting over here!"

He looked at Gideon. "Guess I should go join my brothers and let you eat in peace."

"Nice talking to you," Gideon said.

"Same here."

Nick glanced back at the man as he neared the table where his brothers were seated. There was something different about him. But Nick wasn't sure what the _different_ was.

* * *

"Must you do that here?" Nick said, staring at his older brother.

Joe looked at his younger brother, part of a noodle hanging out of his mouth. "What?" He slurked the noodle back into his mouth and swallowed. "Dad was doing it the other day."

"At home," Nick replied. He looked over at Kevin and growled in his throat. "Really…. You really have to do that here."

Kevin looked over at him after swallowing the noodle, this time completely. "What?"

Nick glared at both of them. "I would deny that I'm related to you, but it's too late for that." _This is what I get for suggesting 'Nothin' but Noodles'._ He had a hard time seeing how swallowing a noodle two-thirds of the way and then pulling it back of your throat could be so entertaining. Nick pursed his lips. They were staring at him. They knew what he was thinking.

"You can't deny it," Joe said.

"We have proof," Kevin added.

"Fine." He had to admit it. But he still didn't see how it could be so entertaining. "But I was at home. And it was a long time ago."

His two older brothers looked at each other and then back at him. "It was two weeks ago," they said in unison.

Nick grimaced. His grimacing only caused his brothers to smile at him.

Joe looked at Kevin. "Ya know, Nick's grimaces are never the same twice."

"Yeah, you're right," Kevin replied. "No two are alike. Kinda like snowflakes."

He could say something in riposte…but he couldn't think of anything that wouldn't trigger a response, so he just ignored them and finished his Cajun chicken alfredo. _They've got to have off-switches somewhere._

"Speaking of snowflakes…." The brothers looked up from their meal.

"Hey, Gideon," Nick greeted. "Heading out?"

"Yeah. And you boys better be headin' out soon. Snow's starting to fall again. And I guarantee it's only going to get heavier." Gideon adjusted his jacket. "You boys be careful."

"You, too," Nick said.

Gideon smiled. "Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas," they returned.

Nick watched as Gideon exited the restaurant. "You okay, Nick?" Kevin asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he answered, turning back to his brothers.

"Does Macy have an older sister?" Joe queried, seemingly off in his own world.

"Not that I know of," Kevin replied. "Why?"

"I swear that waitress looks like an older version of Macy."

Kevin followed Joe's line of sight. "Whoa…. You're not kidding."

Nick looked back out the window as his brothers babbled on about the waitress looking like Macy. The snow was falling lightly, not yet sticking to the cleared roads; but that was likely to change. He had a strong feeling that this Christmas Eve was going to be unlike any other the three of them had ever known.

* * *

"Joe…. What are you doing?" Nick leaned against the Enclave next to his eldest brother, watching his other older brother play with the squeegee.

"Trying to get this squeegee out of the bucket," Joe replied matter-of-factly. "It's frozen to the bottom."

"You're gonna break it," Nick said.

"No. I'm not," Joe retorted flatly, not bothering to even glance at his younger brother.

"Why do we call it a squeegee?" Kevin queried to no one in particular. "Who decided that's what it should be called?"

Nick looked at him. "I…." He paused and looked out into the street. "Don't know. Whoever invented it?"

"Yes, but who invented it?"

"Forget who invented it, how do you even spell it?" Joe said, walking up to his brothers, squeegee-less.

"S-Q-U-E-E-G-E-E," Nick recited. "I think."

Kevin looked around his youngest brother. "No luck, Joseph?"

"No…" Joe replied, slightly miffed that he was outsmarted by the frozen squeegee. He silently cursed the squeegee and then promptly switched gears. "I'm thirsty. And hungry. I'm going into the store."

"You just ate an hour ago," Nick called out after him.

"Chinese food doesn't stay with you very long," Joe returned.

"It's true, you know," Kevin said to Nick. "I'm hungry, too."

"That's why I had Italian." Nick pushed himself off the SUV. "I'm gonna go make sure he doesn't buy out the store. Besides, I'm thirsty."

Kevin let out a big yawn as he capped the gas tank. He was ready to fall asleep. Of course, falling asleep against the SUV would be better than falling asleep at the wheel. _Asleep at the Wheel…. That's a Country band._ Not that it would be possible to fall asleep at the wheel with Joe and Nick in the car. _Yeesh! Younger brothers._ But they were good for a lot of things. According to Justin Baumgartner, anyway. Though, to Kevin, some of those things didn't sound too nice. And still others bordered on questionable.

He leaned against the vehicle, staring out into the street. It was fairly empty. Well, except for the snow; but that didn't count. "There's one," he said to himself as a car passed by. He yawned again. "I should probably move the car…SUV."

As he opened the car door, he glanced back at the road. There was a man standing on the opposite side, looking at him. His gaze was intense and it unnerved Kevin. _Creepy._ A semi passed between them and he looked away momentarily, putting the keys into the ignition. When the truck had passed and he looked back out across the road, the man was gone.

Kevin shook his head. "Must've inhaled too much of the fumes."

* * *

"That _cannot_ be good for you," Nick said as he watched his brother collect an assortment of sugary goodness. "You're not seriously going to eat all that, are you?" Joe glared at him. "Right…. Stupid question. I'm gonna grab a bottle of water."

Joe stood in the chip isle, debating on whether or not to get a few small bags of Doritos or one of the family-size bags.

"Doritos!" he heard his older brother say enthusiastically. He watched Kevin grab the family-size bag. _Debate over._

"You know, I _am_ craving something sweet," Nick said, rejoining his brothers.

"Italian food does that," Kevin said.

"That's why they drink wine with their meals," Joe added.

Nick shook his head. "Whatever." He glanced at the clock behind the counter. "Come on, we need to get going. It's after two."

Joe looked out the window as he and Kevin walked towards the counter. He didn't see the SUV. "Where'd you park?"

"I had to park around the side," Kevin replied, playing with his phone. "What's that beeping sound?"

"Ah, man…." Joe put his goodies down on the counter and pulled his phone out. "Great," he breathed. "My phone's dying."

"I told you to put it on the charger last night," Nick said. Joe grimaced at him. "Do you have your car charger?"

"No," Joe replied. "It's in the Lincoln." He huffed. "I guess it really doesn't matter. It's not like we'll be phone-less." He turned the phone off and stuffed it back into his pocket.

"Okay, let's go," Kevin said, handing the bag of treats to Joe.

Stepping out of the store, Nick was suddenly hit with an odd feeling. Something wasn't right. He sprinted past his brothers to the SUV and plastered his face against the back window. _"Nononono…no…."_

Joe glanced at his older brother. "Is it just me, or is our little brother acting a little weird?"

"Uh…Nicholas?" Kevin raised an eyebrow. "What are you doing?"

Nick stepped back and looked at his brothers. "You did lock it up, right?"

Kevin furrowed his brow. "Yes."

"You're sure?"

"Nick, what's up with you?" Joe said as he and Kevin stopped at the rear of the vehicle. "You know that's one thing Kev never forgets to do. _Especially_ if there's something important in it." Nick didn't say anything. "What's with the look, little bro. You look like a puppy that's just been kicked."

Nick turned back to the rear door and pulled up the handle. Nothing. No annoying alarm blaring through the parking lot. And then he opened it.

Joe dropped the bag. All three of them stood silently, staring, unable to move. The trunk. Empty. The toys. The blankets. Gone.

**JONAS**

Hope that was a good enough update. Again, sorry for the delay.

The part about the waitress looking like an older version of Macy comes from a personal experience. There's a waitress over at a restaurant that I frequent that I swear looks like an older version of Macy. What really sold the first time I saw her (she was actually my waitress then) was the football (Dolphins) jersey and her hair back in a ponytail. Weird.


End file.
